ALBANY -- State Sen. Cecilia Tkaczyk took her oath of office to formally join the Legislature Wednesday, giving Democrats a morale boost in a session where they hold the majority of seats but remain frozen out of power.

"It feels great and it's great to have so many people here supporting me ... I'm here to represent everyone regardless of party affiliation and where you live," she said. "It's just important to know my door is open. If I can help you, I will."

Tkaczyk narrowly won her seat representing the 46th state senate district -- just 18 votes put her ahead of Repubilcan George Amedore. Those 18 votes, cast in the November election, were not officially tallied until Friday. As she took her oath of office Wednesday, Tkaczyk was repeatedly and loudly cheered by Democrats who lined the Senate Chamber and crowded a spectator gallery above.

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Republicans have formed a new Senate Majority Coalition with five breakaway Democrats and skipped the swearing-in conducted by State Supreme Court Justice Christine Clark. Tkaczyk admitted afterwards that she joins a Senate whose leadership remains hotly disputed even though it has the tacit support of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who endorsed GOP incumbents last fall.

"It's an odd configuration and, you know, we'll have to see how it works," she said when asked about serving in a Senate led by the new bipartisan coalition. "I'm happy I'm here and I'm going to vote on bills that I hope will get to the floor. I especially want to see strong progressive bills like campaign finance reform, lifting the minimum wage, passing the Reproductive Health Act."

Tkaczyk said economic development and helping improve the condition of public school finances were her top priorities. She served on a local school board in Schenectady County and has a small family farm. She is also a former Senate Democratic staffer.

Earlier in the afternoon, Tkaczyk held her first press conference of the 2013 session, declaring her opposition to hydrofracking and urging a vote on a ban on drilling for shale gas in New York state.

Tkaczyk won by just 18 votes out of more than 100,000 cast in the race, which took place in a newly configured district without an incumbent senator. Republicans in charge of redistricting drew the lines to boost their chances of winning with Amedore, a popular Albany-area vote-getter.

But, helped along with a last-minute round of attack ads paid for by outside groups, Tkaczyk won the sprawling district, which covers parts of five counties and runs from the Mohawk Valley down the Hudson Valley to Kingston.

She says he is planning a district office in Kingston and other areas of the district if possible, as well as her main office in the Legislative Office Building. She said one of her tasks ahead was to travel the district and get to know voters better.